Marwan Al-Barghouthi: Palestinian Mandela By Mike Whitney

Marwan Al-Barghouthi: Palestinian Mandela

By Mike Whitney

Al-Jazeerah, November 28, 2004

The lame duck Secretary of State, Colin Powell, has been trundled off to
Israel, but it has nothing to do with resurrecting the moribund Road Map.
And, it certainly doesn’t involve paying his respects to the former elected
leader of the Palestinian people, Yasser Arafat. The Bush Administration
demonstrated their contempt for Arafat by sending off a rag-tag entourage of
low-level emissaries to the Palestinian President’s funereal. It was a final
desperate gesture intended to humiliate the Palestinian people.

Now, Powell has appeared on the scene pretending he has taken Palestinian
interests to heart; its quiet a transformation, although not entirely
convincing. The real motive for Powell’s trip is to assist Israel in the
selection of the next Palestinian leader. It is a preemptive strike against
the campaign of Marwan Al-Barghouthi; the nightmare candidate who threatens
to perpetuate Palestinian struggle against 37 years of Israeli occupation.

Powell’s rhetoric has been predictably bland; invoking the overworked
bromides of “resuming negotiations” and taking advantage of this “historic
opportunity”. Behind the scenes, however, the action has been fast-paced and
entirely focused on one ultimate goal, making sure that Al-Barghouthi does
not appear on the presidential ticket. Both Israel and the US are completely
committed to “hand-picking” the next leader of the Palestinian people and
they won’t be discouraged by outpourings of popular support for the
incarcerated Barghouthi.

Does this explain why Fatah's revolutionary council has acted so quickly to
approve PLO’s Mahmoud Abbas as the Fatah’s candidate for the January
elections?

Perhaps. Abbas puts a more “moderate” face on Palestinian interests, and
he is clearly the choice of the Israeli leadership. His grandfatherly
appearance and outspoken opposition to violence has inspired confidence in him
among the Sharon government. Apart from that, Sharon knows he can probably
manipulate the soft-spoken Abbas and impress on him the need to police his
own people while (illegal Israeli)* settlement continues.

Al-Barghouthi on the other hand, is the people’s champion; a charismatic
firebrand emblematic of Palestinian dignity and resistance. His internment
in an Israeli prison threatens buoy his popularity in the same way it did
for Nelson Mandela or Bobby Sands. In truth, Al-Barghouthi doesn’t need the
endorsement of Fatah, his personal plight embodies the Palestinian struggle
in a way that far exceeds Abbas. By any measure, he’s the hands-on favorite.

In other words, Bush and Sharon have a “big-time” problem. There’s no
way that the Israeli leadership will let elections go forward if Al-Barghouthi has any chance of winning. Like his friends in Washington, Sharon
is looking for a facsimile of Ayad Allawi, a predictably venal stooge who
will keep his people in line with heavy doses of violence. Abbas may not be
that man, but he’s quite a bit closer than Barghouthi. Al-Barghouthi’s defiance
creates the worst possible scenario for Israel, a Palestinian president who
refuses to collude with the occupation and their goal of expanding (illegal Israeli)*
settlements.

Washington’s efforts to subvert the electoral process are already becoming
apparent. Representatives from Fatah have been dispatched to Al-Barghouthi’s
prison to pressure him to withdraw from the race. Palestinian cabinet
minister Qaddura Faris met with Barghouthi to dissuade him from the
potentially “divisive” campaign against Abbas.

Al Jazeera reports, “The door before Al-Barghouthi is closed now, after the
decision of the Fatah Central Committee to to nominate Abbas. If he runs as
an independent candidate, Fatah will lose votes to other factions and this
may also create divisions inside the movement.” (Hatim Abd al Qadir, Fatah
official).**

* Added by the editor.

** This article was written before Marwan Al-Barghouthi declared that he would not run for president.

Earth, a planet hungry for peace

Apartheid Wall


The Israeli Land-Grab Apartheid Wall built inside the Palestinian territories, here separating Abu Dis from occupied East Jerusalem. (IPC, 7/4/04).

The Israeli apartheid (security) wall around Palestinian population centers in the West Bank, like a Python. (Alquds,10/25/03).

Opinions expressed in various sections are the sole responsibility of their authors and they may not represent Al-Jazeerah's.

editor@aljazeerah.info